Drawer slide



March 31, 1942. H, YL. KNNII-:DY 'Er AL DRAWER SLIDE Filed May 2, 1941 ed] Charles Unca her BY ww -r INVENTORS Howard L Knn ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 31, 1942 M Y U2,z77,703`\ DRAWER SLIDE Howard LfKennedy and Charles A. Uncapher,

Van Wert, Ohio, assgnors to Kennedy Manufacturing Company, Van Wert, Ohio, a corporation of Indiana Application May 2, 1941, Serial No. 391,506L

(Cl. 45-Z7) 2 Claims.

This invention relates to slide suspensions for drawers, trays and the like which are slidably mounted in a supporting structure, such as a cabinet, tool chest, or desk, and is an improvement upon the device disclosed in the copending application of Howard LQ Kennedy, Serial No. 370,211, led December lll, 1943. In the copending application retractable stops are provided in the slide bar which have the form of elongated resilient metal strips anchored at one end to the bar and provided with projecting portions adjacent and free ends which normally lie in the path or fixed stops on the members in which the slide bar is mounted.

The present invention has for its objectl to provide a releasable stop device of the ytype disclosed in the earlier application in which the releasable stop will not be disengaged by violent impacts, and in which the impacts of the cooperating stops against the releasable stop members are transmitted directly to the slide. bar, thereby protecting the anchoring connection between the strips and the slide bar against tension stresses.

With the above and other objects in View the invention may be said to comprise the device illustrated in the accompanying drawing hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the appended claims, together with such variations and modifications thereof as will be apparent to one skilled in the art to which the invention pertains.

Reference should be had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, in which:

Figure l is a perspective view showing the invention applied to the drawer of a cabinet or the like.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the suspension members detached from the drawer and supporting structure.

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line indicated at 3 3 in Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary top plan view of the suspension member shown in Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary longitudinal section through the suspension members on a somewhat enlarged scale.

In Fig. l of the accompanying drawing there is shown a housing or cabinet I, a drawer 2 and one of two identical drawer supporting or suspension devices which are interposed betweenk the sides of the drawer and the adjacent-walls of the cabinet.

The suspension device comprises two supporting members in the form of channel bars 3 and 4 which are secured in fixed position to the drawer 2 and the wallof the cabinet, with the open side of one supporting bar facing the open side of the other. A supporting slide bar 5 is mounted in the two channel bars 3 and 4 for endwise movement therein, the channel bars and slide bars providing an extensible support for the drawer 2. The channel bars 3 and 4 are provided with inwardly bent side flanges 6 which provide retaining grooves and each of the channel `bars is provided with a stop I in the channel thereof which may be formed by striking up an integral projection from the web of the bar.

The slide bar 5 is preferably formed of sheet metal and may consist of two channel shaped members 8 and 9 attached together back to back l and provided with edge flanges I0 which slide in the grooves provided by the flanges 6 of the supporting bars. The slide bar is provided with an opening I I adjacent each end thereof through the webs of the channel members 8 and 9 and .of one ofthe openings II and bowed sufficiently to hold the free end thereof against the slide bar with spring pressure. Each strip I2 extends outwardly from its anchoring socket I3 past an opening II to adjacent an end of the slide bar. The outer end of each strip is free for movement toward or away from the face of the slide bar and is doubled back upon itself to provide a finger'tab I4 in the form of a loop which is yieldingly held against the face of the bar outwardly of the opening Il. The end of the doubled back portion of the strip I2 which is on the inner side of the strip is bent laterally to provide a stop flange I5 which projects through the opening I I into the .path of a stop member 1.

The two stop members 1 are disposed between the stop flanges I5 of the two releasable stop members so that the sliding movement of the slide bar with respect to each of the supporting bars 3 and 4 is limited. The stop flange I5 of each releasable stop member is disposed in its opening II with its outer face closely adjacent stop 'I when the stop engages the flange, so that the strip I2 is not subjected to tension when engaged by the stop and the connection of the strip to the slide bar at the anchoring socket I3 need not be a strong connection since the anchor is not required to resist the impact of the stop members.

The edge of the opening H engaged by the stop ange l5 also serves as a fulcrum for the stop flange so that the rocking movements of the stop flange under the pressure of the stop 'I does not tend to dislodge the stop ange from engaging position. The loop Ill and the bowed portion of the strip l2 provide a resilient support for the flange i5 which permits the flange to rock upon the edge of the opening Il under the pressure of the stop 'l to cushion the impact of the stop. The rocking of the flange l5 on the slide bar tilts the loop I outwardly tending to open the loop and increase the bow in the body oi the strip l2. The resistance of the opening metal strip to such distortion eiectively cushions the angular movements of the stop ange. The pressure of the stop l against the ange i5 may force the flange to or past a perpendicular position with respect to the slide bar, so that the pressure of the flange against the edge of the opening tends to lock the flange in engaging position rather than to force the ange outwardly through the opening.

Whenever it is desired to remove the drawer entirely from the cabinet, one of the releasable stops may shifted out of stop engaging position by means of the projecting loop i4, so that the slide bar may be freed from one of the supporting members. In replacing the drawer on the supporting members, the inclined faces of the stop member l will force the releasable stop member outwardly until the stop member 1 is moved to a position within the stop flange, after which the strip Il will spring inwardly toward the face of the slide bar to return the stop flange t0, engaging position.

It is to be understood that variations and modifications of the specific devices herein shown and described for purposes of illustration, may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What we claim is:

l. A slide suspension comprising a supporting member having a channel, a stop carried by the supporting member in said channel, a slide bar mounted for endwise sliding movement in said channel, said slide bar having a longitudinal channel into which said stop projects and an opening to said channel, and a releasable stop member carried by the slide bar, said releasable stop member comprising an elongated resilient metal strip disposed longitudinally of the bar and having its inner end anchored to said bar at a point spaced from said opening and to the same side of said opening as said stop, the outer end portion of the releasable stop member being free and extending across said opening, the free end of said strip being doubled back upon the side facing the opening to provide a finger tab in the form of a loop outwardly of the opening, the end of the strip being bent laterally to provide a resilient stop flange inwardly of the tab which projects through said opening into the path of said stop, the outer face of said stop flange being closely adjacent the outer edge of said opening, whereby said edge of the opening provides an abutment and fulcrum for said stop flange.

2. A slide suspension comprising two channelshaped supporting imembers disposed with the open side of one facing the open side of the other, a stop carried by each supporting member in the channel thereof, a slide bar having opposite side portions slidably mounted in said channels, said slide bar having longitudinal channels in opposite side faces thereof to receive said stops, and having an opening adjacent each end through the portion of the bar separating the channels in opposite facesthereof, and releasable stop members carried by the bar and engageable with said stops, said releasable stop members each comprising an elongated strip of resilient metal, one mounted` in each of said channels of the bar and each anchored at its inner end to said bar, the free ends of said strips extending past said openings and being doubled backY upon the body of the strip on the side thereof facing the bar to provide a linger tab in the form of a loop outwardly of the opening, the end of the doubledback portion being bent laterally to provide a stop ange inwardly of the tab which projects through the adjacent opening into the path of one of said stop members, the stop flange of each releasable stop member being closely adjacent the outer edge of the opening through which it projects, whereby said edge of the opening provides an abutment and fulcrum for said stop iiange.

HOWARD L. KENNEDY. CHARLES A. UNCAPHER. 

